Misc Gabapentin Withdrawals (Help Please!)

[JustCallmeJen]

Hello!

A little bit about myself. I've been on gabapentin for about a year now. The first 6 months or so I would take it as prescribed (1200 mg/day) and would occasionally miss days with no noticeable effects. I was addicted to opiates for over 10 years and quit taking opiates in November 2015 with the help of higher doses of gabapentin. For the past 6 months or so I've been taking very high doses of it (up to 9 grams/day) and would rarely go a couple days without it here and there. There was once or twice that I was without it for a week at most and I had severe withdrawal symptoms that was worse than any other withdrawal I've been through. So anyways...

I am now completely out of gabapentin. I took my last dose about 9 hours ago. When my doctor put me on this drug she told me that it was non-addictive and could stop taking it when needed.I just want off of this stuff for good. I am a single mom with no help and it's hard taking care of kids when you feel so bad. My anxiety is already in overdrive knowing that in 24 hours or less the withdrawal will begin. I need help, I can't do this alone. How long is this going to last? Is there any OTC meds that will help? Any tips from people who have been through this? PLEASE HELP!!!

 

[Nuli]

hi,


I was in a similar situation about 6 months ago, only instead of using gabapetin, I used lyrica[FONT=arial, sans-serif] (pregablin) which is pretty much gabapentin's newer more potent sister. I was taking very large dosages daily to aid with opiate withdrawal. Also, similar to you, I did not know this drug causes dependency issues. Well, I don't want to scare you, but lyrica withdrawal was terrible. Not as intense as opiate withdrawal, but very intense anxiety, hot/cold sweats, insomnia, and terrible stomach pains. The worst part was the length of the withdrawal, which didn't start to let up until 4 weeks after my last dose. After some research,the withdrawal seems to be more related to a benzo type withdrawal, in terms of the length and symptoms. Which makes sense because they both work with GABA receptors, just in different ways. Although, I havent heard of seizure risks from lyrica or gabapetin.

Now some advice on what to do, I would contact your dr asap and tell them of your issues and REALLY insist that they help you taper down your dose. I wasent as fortunate as I did not have the lyrica prescribed to me. The only thing that I found to help were benzos and phenibut, but you have to be careful on not switching one dependency for another.

I do feel for you. That period of my life was one of the hardest things I have gone through. Good luck[/FONT]

 

[MrCream]

Sorry I can't help you because I take 800mg 3x a day and I can just stop for weeks at a time with no problems, so I have never heard of w/ding from gabapetin.....to be honest after taking it for a couple months straight it didn't seem to be helping my back anymore so I just stopped taking them for a few weeks and since then I take them every once in a while when my pain is really flared up...Good Luck...if the w/d is so bad for you maybe you could do a taper plan first before you just jump competely off of them take 3g a day for a week then 2.5g per weeks and so on and so forth...

 

[JustCallmeJen]

The last time I went without them for a week I had severe anxiety/panic attacks, heart palpitations, sweating, cold chills, hot flashes, abdominal pain, nausea, insomnia, extreme restlessness, etc...

I called my Dr. then and she told me that there were no withdrawal symptoms associated with stopping gabagentin and that it would be okay. She just wasn't listening to anything I was telling her. I have none left to taper with at this point so cold turkey it is.

 

[Nuli]

The last time I went without them for a week I had severe anxiety/panic attacks, heart palpitations, sweating, cold chills, hot flashes, abdominal pain, nausea, insomnia, extreme restlessness, etc...

I called my Dr. then and she told me that there were no withdrawal symptoms associated with stopping gabagentin and that it would be okay. She just wasn't listening to anything I was telling her. I have none left to taper with at this point so cold turkey it is.

If you do a search on this forum, you will find multiple people reporting experiencing withdrawal from gabapentin/lyrica. I believe the reasons some people seem to have worse symptoms comes from the high doses. I was taking around 2000mg of lyrica per day for 2 months. That about three times the maximum daily prescribed dose.

If the dr is unwilling to help you taper and going to another dr is out of the question, I would recommend ordering some phenibut and using it sparingly, like three days on two days off, keeping the doses low 500mg-1000mg. It will help a lot with the anxiety and sleep issues, as it also works with gaba receptors. Just don't take it everyday for too long or you will need to taper off the phenibut.

 

[dopemaster]

I took gabapentin and then lyrica for nerve pain.

I wouldn't want to come off. I came off some rough shit and well gaba is rxd for anxiety and pain.

I will make this short, the pain will pass coming off it, but you will want to be on it or something narcotic for a while, its all addictive even antidepressants and antipsychotics, some help, some don't, regardless its a ball and chain and you need insurance and shit and well is sucks ot need a rx and without it I turn to liguor so dunno what to tell you, when I was in my 20s getting off anything was easy.

Once I hit 30 I just went with a cocktail of some narcotic and some narcotic medications for pain and panic attacks but like I always been on drugs since childhood so once again I just know it will pass if you want off but its gonna hurt a while cuz gaba hits similar parts of the brain like benzos and barbituates, the gaba recoptors be pain and anxiety and you will be hypersensitive for a hot minute, but it will pass.

I suppose do you really want it to? Seriously do you want off or not? If you want off I suggest excorsise and healthy food to keep yourself occupied and dealing with it.

 

[Zerwas]

I would talk to your doctor again and get another script for tapering. The assumption that Gabapentin does not cause WDs is widely spread and some people indeed do not experience withdrawals from Gabapentin and Lyrica while others get intense symptoms. I think it has something to do with dosage and the time-frame for how long it was taken.

9g a day is really high. How much did you take the last days before stopping it now?

 

[Cdkman]

Look up phenibut..it is a lot like gabapentin and u can order it online..it has its own withdrawal and addiction potential but I believe if u use it to do a 2 week taper u will feel a lot better..I don't know what the dose equivelant is to gabapentin but u can stick with a small dose just to ease the pain and let u continue to be a good mom without the irritation of gabapentin withdrawal

it is truly scary that doctors are so effing clueless .id suggest maybe talking to another doctor to see if u can get a one time script to taper since gabapentin is prescribed easily..do u have any friends that might have some extra to give u for a quick taper?

best of luck sweetie :D

 

[belfort]

Hello!

A little bit about myself. I've been on gabapentin for about a year now. The first 6 months or so I would take it as prescribed (1200 mg/day) and would occasionally miss days with no noticeable effects. I was addicted to opiates for over 10 years and quit taking opiates in November 2015 with the help of higher doses of gabapentin. For the past 6 months or so I've been taking very high doses of it (up to 9 grams/day) and would rarely go a couple days without it here and there. There was once or twice that I was without it for a week at most and I had severe withdrawal symptoms that was worse than any other withdrawal I've been through. So anyways...

I am now completely out of gabapentin. I took my last dose about 9 hours ago. When my doctor put me on this drug she told me that it was non-addictive and could stop taking it when needed.I just want off of this stuff for good. I am a single mom with no help and it's hard taking care of kids when you feel so bad. My anxiety is already in overdrive knowing that in 24 hours or less the withdrawal will begin. I need help, I can't do this alone. How long is this going to last? Is there any OTC meds that will help? Any tips from people who have been through this? PLEASE HELP!!!

anytime your doctor puts you on any medication, do some research on your own!its obvious many doctors are clueless in this area..30 minutes of research and u could have talked your doctor into a different medication..oh well, water under the bridge..why are you being cut off of this medication?did you know beforehand that it was happening?

may i ask why u were taking up to 9 grams a day!?!?please be honest, were you chasing a high?that dose is just staggeringly high.honestly just trying to understand..

buy some L theanine, Kava Kava, melatonin for sleep..i think Balcofen would be of some help..if u cant get from a doctor, pm me and ill point u in the right direction..good luck

 

[belfort]

The last time I went without them for a week I had severe anxiety/panic attacks, heart palpitations, sweating, cold chills, hot flashes, abdominal pain, nausea, insomnia, extreme restlessness, etc...

I called my Dr. then and she told me that there were no withdrawal symptoms associated with stopping gabagentin and that it would be okay. She just wasn't listening to anything I was telling her. I have none left to taper with at this point so cold turkey it is.

i almost wonder if you could possibly sue your doctor for something like this!?seems like a case of negligence to me big time..

 

[JustCallmeJen]

I would talk to your doctor again and get another script for tapering. The assumption that Gabapentin does not cause WDs is widely spread and some people indeed do not experience withdrawals from Gabapentin and Lyrica while others get intense symptoms. I think it has something to do with dosage and the time-frame for how long it was taken.

9g a day is really high. How much did you take the last days before stopping it now?

The last week or so I was dropping the dosage down to about 4-5g/day and the last 2 days were about 3g/day.

 

[JustCallmeJen]

anytime your doctor puts you on any medication, do some research on your own!its obvious many doctors are clueless in this area..30 minutes of research and u could have talked your doctor into a different medication..oh well, water under the bridge..why are you being cut off of this medication?did you know beforehand that it was happening?

may i ask why u were taking up to 9 grams a day!?!?please be honest, were you chasing a high?that dose is just staggeringly high.honestly just trying to understand..

buy some L theanine, Kava Kava, melatonin for sleep..i think Balcofen would be of some help..if u cant get from a doctor, pm me and ill point u in the right direction..good luck

I wish I had knew more about it when I first started taking it. I wish I would have done my own research. Oh well, too late for that now. I wasn't being cut off from my script. I was taking way more than my script and getting the extra from someone I know. I started taking more to get through opiate withdrawal (methadone to be exact which went on for quite a while). Then I kept taking higher doses to prevent myself from going through the withdrawals. A vicious cycle.

 

[Jetthecaf]

I seems like people with prior benzo addictions had troubles with this drug and withdrawal. Have you been on benzos before? Definitely get a new script and go something like 1.5g for a week. 1.2g for a week, 900mg, 600mg, 300mg, 200mg, 100mg and then skipping days of 100mg. You would probably have some discomfort after two months of taper but better than jumping off.

I'm surprised being an addict myself I could tell my doc I wanted this drug and at what doses and he was fine with it, you shouldn't have trouble getting a re fill

 

[belfort]

I wish I had knew more about it when I first started taking it. I wish I would have done my own research. Oh well, too late for that now. I wasn't being cut off from my script. I was taking way more than my script and getting the extra from someone I know. I started taking more to get through opiate withdrawal (methadone to be exact which went on for quite a while). Then I kept taking higher doses to prevent myself from going through the withdrawals. A vicious cycle.

oh ok so what do you want to do now?get more gabapentin and taper down(i see that being incredibly difficult as you were taking too much of it as is!) or u just want different meds to help u thru gabapentin withdrawals?

 

[JustCallmeJen]

oh ok so what do you want to do now?get more gabapentin and taper down(i see that being incredibly difficult as you were taking too much of it as is!) or u just want different meds to help u thru gabapentin withdrawals?

I just want off this drug for good! I am looking for OTC meds or something to help me get off of it and still function.

 

[JustCallmeJen]

I seems like people with prior benzo addictions had troubles with this drug and withdrawal. Have you been on benzos before? Definitely get a new script and go something like 1.5g for a week. 1.2g for a week, 900mg, 600mg, 300mg, 200mg, 100mg and then skipping days of 100mg. You would probably have some discomfort after two months of taper but better than jumping off.

I'm surprised being an addict myself I could tell my doc I wanted this drug and at what doses and he was fine with it, you shouldn't have trouble getting a re fill

I've been on benzos before but never for long periods of time. (Usually just a few weeks here and there.)

 

[blue comet]

I took gabapentin for seven weeks at doses from 1200mg to 2100mg per day as prescribed. I stopped after it was causing worsening depression, anger issues, and physical pains in between doses. I have been off the medication for 14+ months and still suffer greatly from the damage it has done to my body. While I have made improvements, I am still paralyzed with intense physical symptoms (endless hair loss, nerve pain, heart palpitations, alcohol & caffeine intolerance, restlessness) and psychological symptoms (SEVERE anxiety, inability to drive or travel, social deterioration, irrational thoughts, derealization, cognitive impairment, memory issues). These words can't do justice as to how bad it is. I've gone through a cold turkey of a four year benzo habit and that was a fun party compared to this. It's honestly been the worst thing that has ever happened to me in my life, and I have a laundry list of bullshit that I've been through. Granted, I have an extreme case regarding my symptoms and their duration. What is not extreme about my case, however, is the fact that all my doctors say gabapentin is a safe, non-addictive drug that shouldn't be causing these problems. So be prepared to deal with dismissive doctors.

I recommend that you taper at a rate comfortable for you once you get to a stable level. You're smart for tripping several Gs off your daily intake off the bat; at those doses you're probably not absorbing much. Just taper slow if it ever gets too uncomfortable, and hopefully you can minimize any suffering that may result. Good luck.

 

[JustCallmeJen]

anytime your doctor puts you on any medication, do some research on your own!its obvious many doctors are clueless in this area..30 minutes of research and u could have talked your doctor into a different medication..oh well, water under the bridge..why are you being cut off of this medication?did you know beforehand that it was happening?

may i ask why u were taking up to 9 grams a day!?!?please be honest, were you chasing a high?that dose is just staggeringly high.honestly just trying to understand..

buy some L theanine, Kava Kava, melatonin for sleep..i think Balcofen would be of some help..if u cant get from a doctor, pm me and ill point u in the right direction..good luck

I just found an old script of 20-25 Baclofen. How will this help? How much should I take? They are 10mg.